GROUND MOTION DOMINANT FREQUENCY EFFECT ON THE DESIGN OF MULTIPLE TUNED MASS DAMPERS

Utilising the Kanai-Tajimi and Clough-Penzien spectrums and the pseudo-excitation algorithm in the frequency domain, parametric study is performed to examine the effect of the dominant frequency of ground motion on the optimum parameters and effective-ness of multiple tuned mass dampers (MTMD) with identical stiffness and damping coefficient but with unequal mass. The examination of the optimum parameters is con-ducted through the minimisation of the minimum values of the maximum displacement and acceleration dynamic magnification factors of the structure with the MTMD. The optimum parameters of the MTMD include the optimum frequency spacing reflecting the robustness, the average damping ratio and the tuning frequency ratio. Minimisation of the minimum values of the maximum displacement and acceleration dynamic mag-nification factors, nondimensionalised respectively by the maximum displacement and acceleration dynamic magnification factors of the structure without the MTMD, is used to measure the effectiveness of the MTMD. The results indicate that in the two cases where both the total mass ratio is below 0.02 and the total mass ratio is above 0.02, but the dominant frequency ratio of ground motion is below unity (including unity), the earthquake ground motion can be modelled by a white noise. It is worth noting, however, that for the total mass ratio above 0.02, the Kanai-Tajimi Spectrum or Clough-Penzien spectrum needs to be employed to design the MTMD for seismic structures in situations where the dominant frequency ratio of ground motion is beyond unity.